Toy vehicle

ABSTRACT

The invention relates to a toy vehicle with one or more wheels to allow the same to move along a surface. At least one item is provided to be selectively positionable on the vehicle, typically on an elongate member positioned around at least part of the side, front and/or end of the vehicle. The selective positioning of the item on the vehicle allows the path of movement and/or number of wheels in contact with the surface to be adjusted depending on the selected location of the item on the toy vehicle at that time.

The present application claims foreign priority under 35 USC §119(a) or 365(b) to United Kingdom Application No. 0611690.9, filed Jun. 14, 2006, and is incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The invention to which this application relates is a toy model vehicle, typically, but not necessarily exclusively, of the sort which includes propulsion means which allows the vehicle to be moved under the force of the propulsion means in at least one direction across the surface.

The provision of toy vehicles is well known and typically the same are of a scaled down replica of either a real vehicle or of a fanciful design. The vehicles can be provided with at least two wheels to allow the vehicle to be moved across the surface and in many instances, can be provided with a motor connected to at least one of the wheels to cause the propulsion of the vehicle across the said surface and therefore avoid the need for the child playing with the toy to push the vehicle. It is also known to provide vehicles which can be controlled remotely by radio frequency or infrared control means which include the ability to direct the vehicle forwards or backwards and/or to turn.

There have been many variations on toy vehicles over the years and one known type of vehicle comprises a vehicle with propulsion means to which a coin can be positioned at the rear of the vehicle. The provision of this coin adds extra weight to the rear of the vehicle and can cause the front two wheels of the vehicle to leave the ground such that the vehicle moves forward along the surface but only the rear two wheels are in contact with the surface. While this vehicle is known to be effective in providing only contact of the rear two wheels with the surface, the effect which is created is limited and therefore the appeal of this type of vehicle quickly diminishes to the child.

SUMMARY

The aim of the present invention is to provide an improved toy vehicle which allows selected variation in operation of the vehicle as it moves along the surface.

In a first aspect of the invention, there is provided a toy vehicle and a further item, said toy vehicle movable along a surface and wherein attachment means are provided to allow the item to be selectively attached at a location on or adjacent to the external surface of the vehicle and retained in attachment as the vehicle moves.

Typically the item is suspended via the attachment means so as to be out of contact with the surface. Typically the item is positioned to lie outside the periphery of the vehicle.

In one embodiment, the attachment means comprises an elongate member which is positioned around at least part of the vehicle and the item includes engagement means which can be selectively attached to the member bar at a desired position thereon.

In one embodiment, an exposed portion of the elongate member is U-shaped and is selectively positionable by the user with respect to the vehicle. In one embodiment the selectable positions are at the rear of the vehicle, to the front of the vehicle or above the vehicle. In one embodiment, the positioning of the member is achieved via a pivotal movement around the axis of attachment of the member to the vehicle and, if required, designated stops can be provided to allow the member to be retained at specific angular positions with respect to the vehicle.

Typically the item is provided in the form of a model character and the engagement or gripping means may be formed as one of the hands or feet of the said character. Typically, at least the gripping means are formed of a resilient material which is sufficiently resilient so as to allow the same to be expanded or moved to pass over at least part of the member and then return to a position to exert a gripping effect on the member and thereby retain the item.

In one embodiment, an alternative or additional gripping means can be provided on the item and these may be positioned so that the same are not immediately apparent to the child in use.

In one embodiment, the item can be articulated so that in addition to the selected positioning of the item at a location on the member, the relative configuration of the item with respect to the member can be altered and this alteration may further adjust the operation of the vehicle as it moves along the surface.

The selective positioning of the item with respect to the member and the selective articulation of the item, allow the operation of the vehicle to be altered dependent on the particular articulation and position of the item with respect to the vehicle. For example, if the item is positioned at one side of the vehicle then only the two wheels of the vehicle which are adjacent that side may contact the surface as the vehicle moves along the same. Alternatively, if the item is at the front or rear of the vehicle, then only the two wheels adjacent the item at the front or rear respectively will contact the surface as the vehicle moves along. Yet further, if the item is positioned at a particular corner of the vehicle, then it may be the case that only one of the wheels of the vehicle will contact the surface, with the wheel being that which lies adjacent to the item. The selective contact of different wheels with the surface causes the travel, speed of travel and/or direction of travel to be altered such that the child can vary the passage of the vehicle along the surface by selective positioning of the item.

Typically the item is manufactured of a material which is of sufficient weight to cause part of the vehicle and one or more of the wheels to leave the surface as it moves and furthermore, the positioning of the item at the periphery or outboard of the vehicle body, further emphasises the effect of the weight of the item.

In one embodiment, the item is slidingly movable along the member so as to allow the selective positioning of the item without the need to remove the gripping means from the bar when a position is to be changed. Furthermore, in one embodiment, and especially if the vehicle is a remote control vehicle, the member and item may include a drive means such as, for example, a rack and pinion arrangement, which allows the item to be driven in movement along the member to a selected position. In one embodiment the movement may be as a result of user actuation of a switch or operation of the remote control for the vehicle to transmit a signal to cause movement of the item.

It should therefore be appreciated that the effect which is created, is particularly effective when the vehicle is moving but the particular manner of movement of the vehicle along the surface is not critical. Thus, the particular movement force can be manual, provided by a push/pull motor or a remote control system and the same effect can be created.

In one embodiment the item position can be moved with respect to the vehicle as the vehicle moves along the surface.

In a further aspect of the invention there is provided a toy vehicle including a body and one or more wheels to allow the vehicle to be moved along the surface wherein the vehicle includes a plurality of locations with which at least one item may be selectively located so as to influence the movement of the vehicle along the surface.

In a further aspect there is provided an item for use with a toy vehicle wherein said item includes at least one attachment means so as to allow said item to be selectively attached to said vehicle.

Typically the item has at least one portion which can be selectively moved with respect to the remainder of the vehicle.

In one embodiment the item is provided with portions which are of a heavier weight than other portions of the item, these portions may be movable with respect to the remainder of the vehicle so as to increase the influence which the same have on the movement of the vehicle.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Specific embodiments of the invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIGS. 1 a and b illustrate a perspective view and side elevation respectively of an embodiment of the invention;

FIGS. 2 a and b illustrate two further examples of an assembly of the invention; and

FIGS. 3 a and b illustrate two possible movement configurations of the assembly in accordance with the invention.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Referring firstly to FIGS. 1 a and b, there is illustrated a first embodiment of the invention. The invention includes a toy vehicle 2 comprising a body 4, wheels 6 and an elongate member 8 which in this case has an exposed portion which is U shaped as shown. An item 10 in the form of a model character is also provided for use in conjunction with the toy vehicle in a manner as will be described.

In this case, the vehicle is provided with a push/pull type of motor in which the vehicle can be moved manually in a reverse direction along the surface and then, when released, the motor is effectively released so as to cause propulsion of the vehicle in the forward direction 12.

The member 8 provided on the vehicle, in this embodiment, can be selectively positionable about pivot axis 20 so as to be moved between a position 14 and a position 18 at the front of the vehicle as indicated by arrow 15. In one embodiment stops or detents can be provided so as to provide predetermined positions at the rear of the vehicle as shown, to an intermediate position such as position 16 above the vehicle as shown in broken lines and/or a position 18 to the front of the vehicle also shown in broken lines. This movement can typically be achieved by pivotal movement of the member by the person about the axis 20 at which the free ends of the member are attached to the vehicle. Although the member is shown as to be U-shaped in this embodiment, it should be appreciated that this is not critical and the member can take any particular form and indeed although reference is made to and elongate member another form may be to provide attachment formations at respective locations on the side, front, end or top of the vehicle with which the item or items may be selectively engaged.

In any case, in this embodiment the member 8 can be selectively positioned by the child so as to allow the item 10 to be selectively positioned around the periphery of the vehicle and outboard of the same. The item itself is provided in the form of a model character in this embodiment and includes gripping means 22, in this case, in the form of one of the hands of the model character. The gripping means are typically provided of a resilient material so as to allow the same to exert a sufficient gripping force on the member 8 when attached and positioned thereon so as to retain the item in the selected position.

Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 2 a, the vehicle can be remotely controlled via control 24 and in which case a battery powered motor is provided within the vehicle 2 which allows movement of the vehicle in a particular direction in response to the remote control signals.

It is also shown how, in addition to the item 10 being selectively positionable on the member 8, the item is articulated in that certain parts of the item such as the arms 26 and legs 28 can be selectively positioned. This therefore allows the effect of the item in terms of weight, to be changed, by the person controlling the location of the weight, even though the position of the item on the member itself may not be altered. This therefore provides two different ways by which the operation of the vehicle as it moves along the surface can be adjusted.

Thus, in use, prior to the movement of the vehicle along the surface, the child can selectively position firstly, the member 8 with respect to the vehicle 2 and the position of the item 10 on the member 8 so that, the item 10 can be positioned effectively at any part around the periphery of the vehicle and lying outboard of the same. Furthermore, the particular configuration of the item 10 can be selected by the user by articulation of portions 26, 28 of the same.

Once the item has been configured and positioned as required, the manner of the movement of the vehicle along the surface will be dependent upon the particular position of the item with respect to the vehicle. For example, in embodiments where the item is shown at the rear of the vehicle, then typically the wheels at the rear of the vehicle only will contact the surface as the extra weight provided by locating the item at the rear of the vehicle and out with the periphery of the vehicle due to the location of the item, will cause the front end of the vehicle and the wheels located there, to lift off the surface 19 in the manner shown in FIG. 3 a. If the item is positioned at the front of the vehicle then only the front wheels of the vehicle will contact the surface as shown in FIG. 3 b. In each case, this is due to the positioning of the weight of the item at the selected location and, as is shown, the ability to selectively configure the item 10 itself, which causes the part of the vehicle furthest removed from the item to be raised from the surface for at least a portion of the movement along the surface. The ability to move the item itself also ensures that the item need not contact the surface 19 or otherwise impede the movement of the vehicle along the surface.

It should also be appreciated that additional items may be provided to be selectively attached to the member.

The movement of the item along the member can be by manual sliding, or be provided by powered movement via a suitable mechanical arrangement such as a rack and pinion arrangement with the elongate member acting as the rack and the item including a pinion which can be driven. In this case the motor provided within the vehicle can be used to allow power to be taken from the same, in addition to the motor being used to propel the vehicle along the surface. This is therefore most appropriate to the remote control form of vehicle and typically the remote control device will include control means to allow the selective movement and positioning of the item along the elongate member.

There is therefore provided a toy vehicle assembly which in addition to being capable of being moved along a surface can be moved in a particular manner which can be determined and altered by the person playing with the vehicle so as to allow the toy to be of greater entertainment and provide a greater number of play variations. 

1. An assembly comprising a toy vehicle and at least one item, said toy vehicle movable along a surface and wherein attachment means are provided to allow the item to be selectively attached at a location on or adjacent to the external surface of the vehicle and retained in attachment as the vehicle moves.
 2. An assembly according to claim 1 wherein the attachment means comprises an elongate member which is located around at least part of the vehicle.
 3. An assembly according to claim 1 wherein there are provided a plurality of possible attachment locations to be selected for the location of the item.
 4. An assembly according to claim 2 wherein at least the exposed portion of the member is U shaped and is selectively positionable by the user with respect to the vehicle.
 5. An assembly according to claim 4 wherein the positioning of the member is achieved via pivotal movement around an axis of attachment of the member to the vehicle.
 6. An assembly according to claim 5 wherein designated stop positions are provided to allow the member to be retained at a specific angular position with respect to the vehicle.
 7. An assembly according to claim 1 wherein the item is provided in the form of a model character.
 8. An assembly according to claim 1 wherein the attachment of the item on the vehicle is such that the item lies to a side, front, rear or above the vehicle.
 9. An assembly according to claim 1 wherein the attachment means on the item are formed from a resilient material so as to allow the same to be expanded to pass over at least part of the member and then return to a position to engage with the vehicle.
 10. An assembly according to claim 1 wherein the item is articulated so that in addition to the positioning of the item on the vehicle, the configuration of the item can be selectively adjusted.
 11. An assembly according to claim 10 wherein the alteration of the configuration of the item can be used to adjust the operation of the vehicle as it moves along the surface with the item attached thereto.
 12. An assembly according to claim 1 wherein the selective articulation of the item and/or selective positioning of the item with respect to the vehicle, allows the operation of the vehicle to be altered as it moves along the surface.
 13. An item according to claim 12 wherein the weight of the item in conjunction with the position of the item on the vehicle, cause one or more wheels of the vehicle to lift off the surface along which the vehicle is moving.
 14. An assembly according to claim 1 wherein the selective positioning of the item can be performed to allow a path of movement of the vehicle along the surface to be selected.
 15. An assembly according to claim 1 wherein the item is attached to the vehicle by attachment to a member which passes around the periphery of at least a portion of the vehicle, said item slidingly movable with respect to the member so as to allow the position of the item to be selected with respect to the member and vehicle.
 16. An assembly according to claim 15 wherein the item is permanently attached to the member.
 17. An assembly according to claim 1 wherein the item is selectively movable with respect to the vehicle with the movement being created by a drive means.
 18. An assembly according to claim 17 wherein the drive means is in the form of a motor provided in the vehicle.
 19. An assembly according to claim 17 wherein the drive means is provided within the item.
 20. An assembly according to claim 18 wherein the motor is also used to propel the vehicle along the surface and is connected to at least one wheel of the vehicle.
 21. An assembly according to claim 17 wherein the operation of the drive means and/or movement of the item is controlled via signals received from by a remote control device, with the toy vehicle and/or item being provided with a remote control signal receiver.
 22. An assembly according to claim 17 wherein the movement of the item with respect to the vehicle is driven by a drive means and the operation of the drive means is via manual actuation of switches and/or remote control signal.
 23. An assembly according to claim 1 wherein the item position can be moved with respect to the vehicle as the vehicle moves along the surface.
 24. A toy vehicle including a body and one or more wheels to allow the vehicle to be moved along the surface wherein the vehicle includes a plurality of locations with which at least one item may be selectively located so as to influence the movement of the vehicle along the surface.
 25. An item for use with a toy vehicle of claim 24 wherein said item includes at least one attachment means so as to allow said item to be selectively attached to said vehicle.
 26. An item according to claim 25 wherein the item has at least one portion which can be selectively moved with respect to the remainder of the vehicle.
 27. An item according to claim 25 wherein the item is provided with portions which are of a heavier weight than other portions of the item. 